The Bath Studio School has been told it "requires improvement" in its first ever Ofsted report.

The education watchdog has damned the school for various reasons. One of its key findings is that "pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities do not receive enough academic support."

Some staff at the Bath Studio School, which opened in September 2014, "do not have high enough expectations of what pupils can achieve at Key Stage 4", while pupils "do not make enough progress...particularly English and mathematics."

It adds: "While staff are working hard to reduce absence, it is still too high. Too many pupils are persistently absent."

But the school was praised for its Key Stage 4 science and photography particularly which "are taught well. As a result pupils engage with their learning and achieve good outcomes."

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The report says pupils "are looked after well" and "behave in a calm, mature fashion" while it school offers a "good" sixth form provision with "effective" safeguarding.

Bath Studio School on Frome Road, Bath has been told it "requires improvement" in its first Ofsted inspection.

The Odd Down school must still improve the quality of its leadership, teaching and attendance levels.

It is attended by 127 pupils, some with varying needs and focuses on creative industries such as journalism and broadcasting alongside English, maths, the sciences and PE.

It is taking on an extra 27 Bath Community Academy students in September - the largest intake of any Bath school it says - as parents prepare for the Rush Hill academy's closure.

Part of the Oftsed report reads: "Additional funding for disadvantaged pupils and those who have special educational needs and/or disabilities is directed effectively towards providing support for pupils’ emotional, behavioural and social needs. For example, the school works well with professionals from the Aspire Academy who are trained in assisting pupils with these needs.

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"Funding is less effectively directed at improving the academic outcomes of disadvantaged pupils. For example, although a revision club has been put in place alongside additional English and mathematics sessions, disadvantaged pupils’ progress is variable.

"The principal has, since the school’s opening in 2014, nurtured a culture in which pupils feel safe and valued. He rightly takes a high degree of pride in the ‘family feel’ of the school because pupils are known and respected as individuals."

But the school's leadership has been criticised, in that "they have not been sufficiently self-critical of key weaknesses. Leaders’ assessment of the quality of some aspects of the school’s work has been over-generous. This has undermined the pace of improvement."

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While it received "requires improvement" in four areas, its '16 to 19 study programmes' provision was rated "good."

The Bath Studio School opened to pupils in September 2014

'We will work relentlessly to build on our strengths and tackle the areas which require improvement'

Bath Studio School principal Colin Cattanach said: "We welcome many of the findings in the Ofsted report, but recognise the need to address speedily the issues it raises for improvement.

"The Ofsted report in particular rates our sixth form as good in its teaching, experience and careers advice. Ofsted praises the culture of the school, the behaviour of our pupils and the respect they show for each other and the good relationships between teachers and pupils. It also says that the creative aspects of the school’s curriculum provide good opportunities for pupils to develop investigative, exploratory skills with links to the wider world.

"However, we recognise that we need to make further improvements at key stage 4 in English and maths - GCSE level - to mirror the success of our sixth form and are well on the way to achieving this with current year groups. We share Ofsted’s view that we need to do more to improve student attendance at key stage 4 and are working hard with students and parents to tackle this. We have already started to make good progress with improved attendance for many of our students compared to their previous schools.

"Opening a new school is a complex achievement and we are pleased that Ofsted identified many strengths and indeed complimented the strong ethos of the school. So it is heartening that Ofsted recognises that our results in our sixth form are good. Indeed they were the best in 2016 for any state school in Bath in terms of value added.

"The school will work relentlessly to build on our strengths and tackle the areas which require improvement and I am confident the school will, in a very short time, be good across all aspects of our work."

The school was inspected by Ofsted's Steve Smith and Christine Lacey on April 26 and 27 2017.